Activist unrelenting in 'fair' fight over coffee

UH student again challenges interim president in battle for bean farmers

SARAH VIREN, Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Published 5:30 am, Saturday, September 29, 2007

Photo: SHARÓN STEINMANN, CHRONICLE

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Tim O'Brien, left, and Ross Barnard discuss fair trade coffee with a University of Houston student.

Tim O'Brien, left, and Ross Barnard discuss fair trade coffee with a University of Houston student.

Photo: SHARÓN STEINMANN, CHRONICLE

Activist unrelenting in 'fair' fight over coffee

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As with any college, the University of Houston has had its share of war protests and abortion debates, but few student movements in recent history have stirred up quite as much hubbub as the current one — over coffee.

In the three semesters since graduate student Tim O'Brien got steamed up over the rights of overseas bean farmers, he and a handful of other fair trade activists have papered the campus with inflammatory fliers, held news conferences to air their concerns and accused the administration of "subverting the democratic process."

Last week, they barged into an open faculty meeting carrying a banner that read "Rudley Ignores Student Concerns."

Interim President John Rudley then took out an advertisement in the student newspaper disputing O'Brien's attacks.

It's the kind of ideological outrage more often associated with a California liberal arts school than a commuter college in Texas, but both sides say they are taking the issue seriously.

Coffee, that is.

"I am trying to build an army," said O'Brien, a fast-talking former Baker Botts paralegal. "I've got to show people the injustice and say, 'Get involved, come join my group and then you can help change this.' "

Rudley declined an interview request from the Chronicle, but in response to e-mail questions noted: "I support students' discussions of all issues, but these discussions should not disrupt the academic programs and activities of the university."

Java joust

The fight, in essence, rests on just what java UH students can buy and where.

O'Brien, inspired by a trip to Ethiopia last year, has been pushing for only fair trade brews on campus — that is, coffee made from beans grown by farmers guaranteed a fair wage (currently $1.36 a pound).

Administration officials say they've made concessions — fair trade coffee is now offered everywhere on campus — but they're not ready to mandate social consciousness to the school's 34,500 students, especially when so many are hooked on Starbucks.

The popular chain, with several locations on campus, is not fully fair trade. Contacted this week, a company spokeswoman said, "We certainly encourage direct communication with students and are happy to discuss our business practices with them."

Admittedly, the sprawling UH campus just south of downtown is not the most likely site for a bean brouhaha. Only 4,000 students live on campus; many others are older, some working full-time jobs, raising kids.

Translation: A cup of joe is just a way to wake up in the morning.

And until now most campus activism has been of a more genteel nature, said Dean of Students William Munson. Students have designated "expression areas" on campus reserved for protests.

Only one other time in his 22 years at UH could Munson remember student activists getting "intrusive." That involved a minor standoff with special education students angered over proposed funding cuts.

A global pot

But fair trade battles, while not always disruptive, have been brewing in recent years at campuses throughout the country — some 200 at last count, according to United Students for Fair Trade, which sponsors O'Brien's group.

Jean Kantambu Latting, a UH professor who has studied social justice, said it's tradition for college students to get fired up about human rights issues.

But activists these days tend to be more global in their focus. Thus the '60s-era hippies who fought for national civil rights have been replaced by students demanding better wages for garment workers and coffee farmers thousands of miles away.

A strong supporter of social justice movements, Latting nonetheless worries when activists such as O'Brien employ "disruptive" tactics. There's always the possibility of backlash, she says, even over a latte.

"I am not sure if that tactic will work," Latting said. "If it works, I support it. If it doesn't, I don't."

For O'Brien and his co-campaigners, however, there is no backing down.

In the year and a half since he posted his first flier — accusing the university's food service provider, Aramark, of exploiting farm workers — O'Brien has rallied about a dozen undergraduates to the cause, pushed politicians and religious leaders to write letters supporting socially conscious coffee and landed himself a spot on student government.

Coffee talks spanned at least six student government meetings in the spring before the elected body reached a compromise: a resolution requiring only fair trade coffee to be sold in the main library's study lounge.

"Students were coming up to me," said Dike. "And they were like, 'You guys are talking about coffee again?' "

Stirred up

That bill should have ended the bean fights. But as with any good political battle, there was a twist. Student-adopted resolutions are nonbinding, so when O'Brien's coffee act went for university approval this semester, the administration shook its head, saying its hands were tied.

Aramark, it turns out, has a contractual right to choose who sells coffee in that study lounge, and it wanted Starbucks.

In a statement this week, a spokesman noted that Aramark is "dedicated to providing its customers with a broad portfolio of coffee options that meet their varying tastes and preferences," including fair trade.

This setback incited what O'Brien is now calling the "escalation."

Last week two members of Students for Fair Trade stormed a faculty senate meeting with their accusatory sign. Later a video of the standoff popped up on YouTube.

This week, O'Brien learned that he may be disciplined for interrupting the meeting. He said he plans to hold a news conference if he deems the punishment too harsh.

A Daily Cougar editorial on Monday called the move a "stunt," but said it highlighted the need for better communication on the commuter campus. Rudley's resulting advertisement, however, effectively rendered the coffee talks closed.

Apparently, the fair traders aren't listening.

At a meeting on Tuesday, they voted unanimously to confront the school president again, this time at today's football game. According to the plan, their banner will bear the same message, "Rudley Ignores Student Concerns," but with an added "Go Coogs" message below — to show school spirit.